Written by: Sister Winsome
Judges 3 v 12-16
Again the people of Israel did what the LORD said was wrong. So the LORD gave
Eglon king of Moab power to defeat Israel because of the evil Israel did. Eglon
got the Ammonites and the Amalekites to join him. Then he attacked Israel and
took Jericho, the city of palm trees. So the people of Israel were ruled by
Eglon king of Moab for eighteen years.
When the people cried to the LORD, he sent someone to save them. He was Ehud,
son of Gera from the people of Benjamin, who was left-handed. Israel sent Ehud
to give Eglon king of Moab the payment he demanded. Ehud made himself a sword
with two edges, about half a metre long, and he tied it to his right hip under
his clothes.
Notes
What do we expect to happen when we knowingly do wrong? It’s so easy isn’t
it: not thinking of possible consequences. Have you ever found yourself thinking,
“I shouldn’t, but I’ll risk it. I’ll get away with it just this time”, and
gone ahead?
Were you living with a guilty conscience, or did it encourage you into taking further risks, next time, since you’d “got away with it” last time? This feeling can be dangerously seductive and even addictive. How do you think people become addicted to illegal substances? Often the start of a disastrous journey involves the taking of only one small step. That’s what we see happened for the Israelites.
They didn’t have to weigh up choices deciding which the better option was; they only had to discard what the Lord had forbidden. They deliberately “did what the Lord said was wrong”. The result? The Lord allowed them to be defeated because of the evil they had done. How they must have regretted their action every day of the long eighteen years that they were ruled as a result.
Yet God forgives. When they cried out to Him, He sent them help in the form of a left-handed man at a time when it was unusual to be left-handed. The same is true for us. God forgives us when we cry out to Him and He helps us, although sometimes that help comes in a form we are not expecting and perhaps sometimes don’t even recognise.
Do you need to ask God to forgive you today for something you have done wrong? Do so, then ask Him to help you out of the situation. Most importantly, though, decide not to allow yourself to fall into the same mess again.
Prayer
Loving Father, I am sorry for the times that I have been deliberately disobedient
to Your word. I especially ask You to forgive… (mention an incident that
you need forgiveness for). Help me out of my difficulties and enable me not
to repeat them. I ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen
Judges 3 v 17-25
Ehud gave Eglon king of Moab the payment he demanded. Now Eglon was a very
fat man. After he had given Eglon the payment, Ehud sent away the people
who had carried it. When he passed the statues near Gilgal, he turned around
and said to Eglon, “I have a secret message for you, King Eglon.”
The king said, “Be quiet!” Then he sent all of his servants out of the room.
Ehud went to King Eglon, as he was sitting alone in the room above his summer
palace.
Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” As the king stood up from his
chair, Ehud reached with his left hand and took out the sword that was tied
to his right hip. Then he stabbed the sword deep into the king’s belly! Even
the handle sank in, and the blade came out his back. The king’s fat covered
the whole sword, so Ehud left the sword in Eglon. Then he went out of the room
and closed and locked the doors behind him.
When the servants returned just after Ehud left, they found the doors to the
room locked. So they thought the king was relieving himself. They waited for
a long time. Finally they became worried because he still had not opened the
doors. So they got the key and unlocked them and saw their king lying dead
on the floor!
Notes
Ehud appeared to have one particular problem: he was left-handed. At the time,
this would have been viewed by the Israelites as a weakness since the Israelites
regarded being left-handed as a physical defect. Yet, this is precisely why,
when Ehud came into the king’s presence, the sword was tied to his right
hip.
Presumably, the king and his guards would normally have expected Ehud to wear his sword on the other side, so they would have been looking for the tell-tale signs of a sword on the wrong side! This helped Ehud to maintain the element of surprise when he attacked the king. A supposedly natural disadvantage was the very reason that Ehud was able to produce a tactical advantage.
What would you say were your particular problems? How would you describe your personal weaknesses? Have you ever thought how God might be able to turn them into strengths? Have you considered how, what others might describe as your particular disadvantage might be the very attribute that God is able to use to advance His purposes? This is what happened with Ehud. It can also happen for you. Ehud worked with what he had (his supposed physical defect of being left-handed), and very effectively! Do you need a change in your mindset as to how you view your particular attributes?
Prayer
Loving Father, there is so much that I might want to change about myself, physically
intellectually and emotionally, yet You love me as I am. Help me to accept
that You can use me right now, even as I seek spiritually more of what You
have for me. Amen
Judges 3 v 26-31
While the servants were waiting, Ehud had escaped. He passed by the statues
and went to Seirah. When he reached the mountains of Ephraim he blew the
trumpet. The people of Israel heard it and went down from the hills with
Ehud leading them.
He said to them, “Follow me! The LORD has helped you to defeat your enemies,
the Moabites.” So Israel followed Ehud and captured the crossings of the Jordan
River. They did not allow the Moabites to cross the Jordan River. Israel killed
about 10,000 strong and able men from Moab; not one escaped. So that day Moab
was forced to be under the rule of Israel, and there was peace in the land
for 80 years.
After Ehud, Shamgar son of Anath saved Israel. Shamgar killed 600 Philistines
with a sharp stick used to guide oxen.
Notes
Ehud had just killed the king of Moab, and the blowing of the trumpet was a
sign for the Israelites to move into battle. But there seems a clear sense
of urgency about Ehud’s cry to the people of Israel: “Follow me!” He was
keen to inflict a decisive victory on the Moabites. But the key seems to
be that the Israelites were ready.
They were gathered, waiting and prepared, ready at the first sound of the trumpet to spring into action. The Moabites were caught on the hop, so to speak, neither ready for defence nor attack. They were completely unprepared for what unfolded before them and were resoundly beaten.
How prepared are you for events in life? Do you have Jesus leading you in all you undertake? Are you so sure in your relationship with Jesus that at the first whisper of His voice you are ready to spring into action to do what He asks of you? Have you responded to the cry of Jesus to “Follow me”? If not, isn’t now a good time to say yes?
If you have responded in the past, are you ready to follow Him right now? In the big things (major decisions in life resulting in huge changes) and the little things (the daily choices, whether or not to involve Jesus)?
Are you spiritually waiting and ready for the first sound of Jesus’ voice? If so, how will you respond as He asks you today to “Follow me”?
Prayer
Lord Jesus, I hear your “Follow me” and I say, “Yes, I will follow You”. Help
me to respond not only with my lips but also with every fibre of my being.
Help my actions today to reflect my words, and may I continually seek to
follow You. Amen
Judges 4 v 1-5
After Ehud died, the Israelites again did what the LORD said was wrong. So
he let Jabin, a king of Canaan who ruled in the city of Hazor, defeat Israel.
Sisera, who lived in Harosheth Haggoyim, was the commander of Jabin’s army.
Because he had 900 iron chariots and was very cruel to the people of Israel
for 20 years, they cried to the LORD for help.
A prophetess named Deborah, the wife of Lappidoth, was judge of Israel at that
time. Deborah would sit under the Palm Tree of Deborah, which was between the
cities of Ramah and Bethel, in the mountains of Ephraim. And the people of
Israel would come to her to settle their arguments.
Notes
“The Israelites again did what the Lord said was wrong.” Don’t you get a sense
of weariness about them? Imagine what it must have felt like for God every
time they did the opposite of what He had told them. Because of their disobedience,
God allowed the Israelites to be defeated. They lived under cruelty, and
eventually “they cried to the Lord for help” when they found themselves in
difficulties and could no longer bear it. What would your response have been?
“You’ve made your bed, now lie in it”? Or, “I told you so!”
Have you ever regretted how you have behaved? Wished you could turn the clock back? Sometimes, it’s only when you look back that you can get the full picture. The clearest sight is hindsight!
Yet, even afterwards, how many times have you found yourself repeating exactly the same pattern of behaviour even though you’ve promised that you won’t? What has been God’s response when you have come to Him?
God has promised us in Jesus that He will forgive and forget if we turn to Him. God is not like us; there’s no reminder of the offence. But even though there’s no licence to keep sinning, there’s no question of, “What, you again? I’ve already forgiven you this before.” There is true forgiveness where there’s genuine regret and sincere desire not to repeat it. Isn’t that a comforting thought?
Prayer
Almighty Father, I ask you to forgive me for all in my life that I know to
be wrong, particularly those things that I keep repeating. Please show me
how I may change. I ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen
Judges 4 v 6-10
Deborah sent a message to Barak son of Abinoam. Barak lived in the city of
Kedesh, which is in the area of Naphtali. Deborah said to Barak, “The LORD,
the God of Israel, commands you: ‘Go and gather 10,000 men of Naphtali and
Zebulun and lead them to Mount Tabor. I will make Sisera, the commander of
Jabin’s army, and his chariots, and his army meet you at the Kishon River.
I will hand Sisera over to you.’”
Then Barak said to Deborah, “I will go if you will go with me, but if you won’t
go with me, I won’t go.”
“Of course I will go with you,” Deborah answered, “but you will not get credit
for the victory. The LORD will let a woman defeat Sisera.” So Deborah went
with Barak to Kedesh. At Kedesh, Barak called the people of Zebulun and Naphtali
together. From them, he gathered 10,000 men to follow him, and Deborah went
with him also.
Notes
Did you ever play games of dare as a child, where you would say, “I will if
you will?” Doesn’t Barak sound just like a child with his declaration to
Deborah that, “I will go if you will go with me, but if you won’t go with
me, I won’t go”? But Barak isn’t a child! What do you think of Barak? “What
a wimp”? Or would we, giving it the best possible view on his situation,
suggest, “What a sensible man who knows his limitations and is prepared not
to go beyond them”?
Either way, Deborah agreed to go with him. She could not by any stretch of the imagination be called a wimp. Here was a woman who was prepared to go into battle. She was more than just sensible, for she was able to discern the voice of God clearly enough to pass on the message to Barak, that God Himself was commanding him to go into battle. But even more, she was insightful and generous with what she knew since she warned Barak that if she accompanied him, she, a woman (in a society and time when women were generally regarded as subordinate to men), would gain the credit for the work and not him!
How much of Deborah’s gifts do you recognise in yourself? Are you courageous, believing that God’s Holy Spirit goes with you wherever you go? Are you able to discern the voice of God leading you in daily life? Are you insightful and generous with what you learn?
If not, do you want these gifts, and if you already have them do you want them to increase and develop? If so, why not ask God, the giver of all?
Prayer
Father God, please guide and accompany me in all the ways that I should go.
Help me to discern Your voice amongst so many that I hear. Give me Your Holy
insight in all my thinking, and teach me to be generous in all my actions.
Amen
Judges 4 v 11-16
Now Heber the Kenite had left the other Kenites, the descendants of Hobab,
Moses’ brother-in-law. Heber had put up his tent by the great tree in Zaanannim,
near Kedesh.
When Sisera was told that Barak son of Abinoam had gone to Mount Tabor, Sisera
gathered his 900 iron chariots and all the men with him, from Harosheth Haggoyim
to the Kishon River.
Then Deborah said to Barak, “Get up! Today is the day the LORD will hand over
Sisera. The LORD has already cleared the way for you.” So Barak led 10,000
men down Mount Tabor. As Barak approached, the LORD confused Sisera and his
army and chariots. The LORD defeated them with the sword, but Sisera left his
chariot and ran away on foot. Barak and his men chased Sisera’s chariots and
army to Harosheth Haggoyim. With their swords they killed all of Sisera’s men;
not one of them was left alive.
Notes
What is it like when you have an important appointment? Maybe it’s a first
date. You don’t want to appear too keen, but on the other hand you don’t
want the other person to think you’re not interested. Perfect timing can
be difficult to achieve - neither too early, nor too late. Can you imagine
how much more difficult it must be to time exactly when you should go into
battle? Yet that is what Deborah achieved. “Get up! Today is the day…” But
she had help - divine help!
God told Deborah exactly when to move on Sisera. “The Lord has already cleared the way for you.” And He had. The outcome was certain. Deborah’s army had a decisive victory precisely because she listened and obeyed God’s word about the right timing.
How often have you done what you thought was the appropriate action but it turned out in the end to be horribly inappropriate? Maybe it made the situation even worse despite your good intentions? Could this have been because you did the right thing but at the wrong time?
How often do you consult the Lord for His timing? Do you allow God to prepare your way for you? To clear the stumbling blocks before your approach? Or do you rush in, so to speak, “where fools fear to tread”, and just hope that a quick prayer for success at the very last moment will be enough? And is it?
Prayer
Lord God, I ask for Your gift of patience and discernment that I might wait
upon You until You show me your perfect time to move. Please go ahead of
me today and clear the way for all I seek to undertake in Your name. Amen
Judges 4 v 17-24
But Sisera himself ran away to the tent where Jael lived. She was the wife
of Heber, one of the Kenite family groups. Heber’s family was at peace with
Jabin king of Hazor. Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Come
into my tent, master! Come in. Don’t be afraid.” So Sisera went into Jael’s
tent, and she covered him with a rug.
Sisera said to Jael, “I am thirsty. Please give me some water to drink.” So
she opened a leather bag of milk and gave him a drink. Then she covered him
up.
He said to her, “Go stand at the entrance to the tent. If anyone comes and
asks you, ‘Is anyone here?’ say, ‘No.’”
But Jael, the wife of Heber, took a tent peg and a hammer and quietly went
to Sisera. Since he was very tired, he was in a deep sleep. She hammered the
tent peg through the side of Sisera’s head and into the ground. And so Sisera
died.
At that very moment Barak came by Jael’s tent, chasing Sisera. Jael went out
to meet him and said, “Come. I will show you the man you are looking for.”
So Barak entered her tent, and there Sisera lay dead, with the tent peg in
his head.
On that day God defeated Jabin king of Canaan in the sight of Israel.
Israel became stronger and stronger against Jabin king of Canaan until finally
they destroyed him.
Notes
Sisera was a man in some danger. He had escaped from the heat of battle but
must have known that he would be pursued, so he ran to the tent of Jael where
he was hoping to find shelter. Jael took the initiative, going out to meet
him. “Come in. Don’t be afraid.” She hid him under a rug, and his protection
- under the terms of hospitality - appeared complete when he requested, and
was given, a drink.
In the culture of the day, it was almost an unwritten law that once someone had become your guest, the rules of etiquette would mean that you could do him no harm; they were under your protection. Why should Sisera be cautious? He had been offered hospitality and found himself amongst friends. But with friends like these, who needed enemies?
You may have heard the saying: “Looks can be deceptive”, and in Sisera’s case, he was in fact sleeping in the tent of the enemy! His guard was down and the welcoming woman was in reality as deadly as any man. Jael waited until he was in a deep sleep, then she struck, literally, and killed him.
Are you easily misled by appearances? If so, don’t you need to ask God for His help in looking at things as He sees them – deep into the heart?
Are you sleeping in the tent of the enemy, the devil, having allowed yourself to be seduced by his attractive hospitality? If so, do you need to leave now before you become so deeply asleep that you will be oblivious to obvious, let alone hidden, dangers?
Do you need to ask God to guide you to places of safety and to real friends who will be genuine in their care and protection of you today?
Prayer
Heavenly Father, may I see issues through Your eyes. May I recognise those
who wish me good. Help me to be a good friend to all who cross my path today,
and keep them and me in Your loving care and protection, today and always.
Amen
word-on-the-web uses the Scripture text taken from the Youth Bible, New Century Version (Anglicised Edition) copyright 1993 by Word Publishing Milton Keynes